evil

When it comes to evil, says Alison Jasper, we have a tendency to mystify it - that is reproduce unchallenging representations of it, from the monster in the movie with unclean appetites for human flesh and blood, right through to the 'monstrous perverts' of the tabloid press. Much more careful analysis and understanding is required to discover what lies behind the routine (but often imprecise) label 'evil'.

Contrary to the impression given by the Anglican Covenant, faithfulness to Christ crucified means being willing, if necessary, to refuse to conform, and instead to take a stand alongside One who was “numbered with the transgressors”, says Savi Hensman. Communion is misconstrued when it is translated as imposed institutional conformity.

In the grey zone, we are all both victims and perpetrators, says Giles Fraser, who has visited one of the major sites of the slave trade. In the grey zone, morality is no longer simple. We need honesty, wisdom and divine mercy to face the facts hopefully.

Hard-line Christian groups who say mild-mannered Harry Potter is an occult conspiracy are unlikely to be reassured by news that one of its key characters is gay - even though JK Rowling has confirmed the series is based on Christian themes.

General Augusto Pinochet, the dictator who ruled Chile from 1973 to 1990, has died in hospital of heart failure, aged 91 - having escaped numerous attempts to charge him for murder, human rights abuses, fraud involving 28 million US dollars, and corruption.